What the Hell Happened: The Political Battle Behind the Blush

Comically exaggerated eyebrows. Unflatteringly heavy eyeliner. Overlined, lipsticked lips — dry and feathered. Foundation caked on. Blush smeared rather than blended, like a clown. This is Republican makeup — at least according to TikTok user and political commentator Suzanne Lambert. Lambert posted a satirical TikTok video back in Nov. 2024, captioned “doing my makeup like the gorg maga girlies in my comments,” in the wake of President Donald Trump’s win in the 2024 election. The video poked fun at Lambert’s vision of typical Republican women’s makeup, which she posted in response to hostile comments she received on her videos from conservative women. It can be clearly described as only one thing: ugly.

The viral TikTok sparked a huge trend, where female creators produce their own versions of bad Republican-coded makeup looks. In response, Republicans have released their own takes on the trend, now mocking what they present as liberal makeup looks. Political polarization in the United States is nothing new, but what does it mean when the current political climate intrudes into the environment of personal appearance? Politics — like mascara after a long night out — have a curious way of bleeding into the realm of female beauty standards.

In truth, makeup and fashion have long been intricately connected with the political world. Various forms of personal expression have been at the forefront of important historical social movements. Take, for example, red lipstick and the movement for women’s suffrage in the early 20th century, when the traditionally provocative and sexually charged red lip became symbolic of feminine power and protest. In the last few years, aesthetics such as “cottagecore” and the “trad (traditional) wife” look have gained widespread popularity, galvanizing new cultural critiques and dialogue about gender roles and feminine domesticity.

Makeup, for many people, is a way to express their individuality to the world, but it can also be a path towards conformity — to a particular beauty standard, or even to a specific political agenda. The world of beauty and beauty standards is often deeply entrenched in stereotypes of people of a particular political affiliation. When female candidates have run for president, they have faced critiques of their physical appearance. Liberals are associated with pantsuits à la Hillary Clinton, which according to Harper’s Bazaar is “often associated with power and authority”. Conservative women are often associated with dresses and skirts, like many of the women of Fox News, which might communicate the value placed on traditional femininity. Beauty and attractiveness are purely alternate forms of personal power — similar to wealth and other forms of social status — and thus, their place in the political landscape and cultural arena is not at all unexpected.

The way one looks has nothing to do with the ability to hold an educated opinion or be a person of good character. Mocking the physical appearances of women of an opposing political party certainly makes a powerful statement, but it may also be interpreted as inherently anti-feminist bullying. It is arguably antithetical to the mission of makeup and the cultivation of physical appearance as a form of empowerment. Makeup has become another weapon in the post-2024 election battlefield, a greater symptom of the current intense polarization and ideological division the United States continues to undergo.

—Staff writer Caroline J. Rubin can be reached at caroline.rubin@thecrimson.com.